VANCOUVER — Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim says people are "sick and tired" of inquiries and reviews into a recurring pattern in which people in a mental health crisis become involved in a public safety crisis.
Sim said that the man accused of killing 11 people by driving a vehicle through a street lined with festival goers on Saturday was under the care of a mental health team and on "extended leave," a term referring to leave from involuntary treatment.
"This is incredibly difficult to hear and even harder to accept because it points to a deeper failure in the mental health system," Sim said during a news conference on Wednesday.
Sim said the city can't take on the crisis alone and needs provincial and federal government help.
"We need to urgently roll out mandatory care for people in severe crisis who pose a risk to themselves and to others, and we need meaningful bail reform, so repeat offenders aren't cycled back into our communities without proper support or supervision," he said.
The mayor said the tragedy on Saturday made the situation even more urgent.
He said they owe action on this to the victims who were at the Lapu Lapu Day festival, their families, and the public, who simply want to feel safe while in their community.
Premier David Eby has said he will call an inquiry if the criminal trial doesn't provide answers about the attack.
But Sim said he wondered how many more such reports are needed into what they know is a pattern of mental health challenges that lead to "significant negative incidents."
Thirty-year-old Adam Kai-Ji Lo is accused of eight counts of second-degree murder and police say more charges are likely. Dozens were injured in the attack and 10 people remain in hospital, many in critical condition.
Mental health has been cited in several attacks in Vancouver, including the stabbing of three people at a celebration in Chinatown in 2023. The suspect was on an unescorted day pass from the forensic psychiatric institute.
The mayor said the city had started a comprehensive internal review of the events surrounding the Lapu Lapu Day festival, including permitting, site safety, planning and emergency response, and will identify steps forward for future events with a preliminary report out in a few weeks.
He said they'll also look at areas at risk in the city, including schoolyards, restaurant patios and beaches, and while they won't be able to secure every possible target in the city, they will do their best to make sure risks are reduced.
"And I think people have to realize that if you go to the root cause, this is a mental health crisis which is manifesting into a public safety crisis," he said.
He said that cause needs to be addressed and if it isn't there will be fewer events in the city.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 30, 2025.
Chuck Chiang, The Canadian Press
